‘Supernatural’s’ Season 13 Finale Good Times Roll – A Look Ahead at Season 14

'Supernatural's' Season 13 Finale - A Look Ahead at Season 14 2018 images

I’ve watched every Season finale except for Season 1 live when it aired – I love watching it live with so many other fans because it’s always a time of great anticipation. This year it was overshadowed a bit by the CW Upfronts being the same day, which for Supernatural fans meant lots of great footage of Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, and Misha Collins but also the confirmation that the Supernatural spinoff Wayward Sisters was indeed not picked up.

Nevertheless, in spite of their disappointment, the entire cast of the spinoff took to twitter to show their support for the show that brought their characters to life. The fact that the Wayward Sisters characters were included in the Road So Far recap seems to suggest that there were lots of people who, like me, thought the spinoff was going forward. Seeing them in the season recap just made me more emotional – and believe me, I was already there.

Thursday also kicked off Wizard World Philly, where I had several Supernatural panels, so that meant I got to watch the finale with my friend Alana King (@_KingBooks_). Alana does Supernatural reaction videos after most episodes, so we decided to film one during the finale. Let’s just say that I never realized how…. dramatic…I am while watching Supernatural. (This is probably a surprise only to me.)  But hey, this was the season finale after all! I think I can be forgiven.

Alana set up the video camera, and we settled in on my couch to watch, both of us bouncing with that unique mix of anticipation and abject terror that Supernatural finales always bring. We and pretty much the entire fandom were a little bit spoiled in that we knew that Jensen Ackles was going to be playing a different character by the end of this episode. When that was first announced (for some reason I can’t fathom because WOW would it have been nice to be shocked and surprised by that reveal), speculation was mostly that Dean would be the archangel, Michael. After all, Dean is “the Michael sword,” his perfect vessel. In Season 5, he repeatedly refused to allow Michael to possess him, but perhaps AU!Michael would find a way? Then there were some articles that insinuated that no, it wouldn’t be Michael; it would someone we hadn’t seen for a long time. So Alana and I went into the episode with a lot of “OMG who is it gonna be??”

The first notes of ‘Carry On Wayward Son’ always make me emotional, but this time we began with a bit of Winchester history instead – and then Rowena in the backseat of the Impala.

Rowena: Boring… Is there music?

‘Carry On Wayward Son’ begins to play and Alana and I turned to each other grinning. What an awesome beginning! Well played, Show!

‘Let The Good Times Roll’ was penned by showrunner Andrew Dabb, as per tradition, and directed by showrunner Bob Singer. Once the episode itself begins, Sam is explaining the state of the non-AU world to some of the new inhabitants, using an old school pin board and sounding very smart indeed. Once he’s finished his recap, Bobby scoffs.

Bobby: The ice caps are melting, a movie where a girl goes all the way with a fish wins Best Picture, and that damn fool idjit from the Apprentice is president? And you call where we come from apocalypse world?

Alana and I laughed and then felt a bit depressed because wow, Bobby, good point. (Except the movie, but maybe that’s just us)

Sam gets a call from Dean, who just says “Hey Sammy, got something” and then Sam, Dean, Cas, and Jack (Alexander Calvert) are…hunting? I was totally confused. There was no sense that there had been a time jump so I didn’t know if they thought Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino) was in that cabin or what the hell they were doing. There’s a bunch of werewolves hanging out there, and honestly, they don’t seem to be hurting anyone and one even makes the exact same joke that Dean just did about Kardashian preferences and I keep thinking about Garth as the foursome swoops in and kills them all. I mean, I know, werewolves, but….anyway, that was a weird scene.

Me: I guess they’re teaching Jack to hunt? Saving people, hunting things, the family business?

Alana: (shrugs – aka I got nothin’)

Back at the bunker, Dean and Sam have a hallway conversation about Jack’s progress.

Dean: The kid did great. Hey, you remember when you asked if we could stop it? All the evil in the world? If we could really change things? Well, maybe with Jack, we can.

Sam: Maybe you’re right. But then what will we do?

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Dean: (holding up his beer) This. A whole lot of this. But on a beach somewhere, you know? Can you imagine? You, me, Cas, toes in the sand, couple of them little umbrella drinks. Matching Hawaiian shirts, obviously. Some hula girls.

[I wondered if that was partly an ad lib, since for the Supernatural convention in Hawaii earlier this year, Jensen did in fact buy him, Jared and Misha matching Hawaiian shirts…]

Sam: You, talking about retiring? You?

supernatural sam winchester you talking about retiring supernatural dean winchester reacts to sam retiring supernatural sam dean winchester drinking down beer 1324 good times roll

Dean: If I knew the world was safe? Hell, yeah. And you know why? ‘Cause we freakin’ earned it, man.

Sam: I’ll drink to that.

It sort of breaks my heart to hear Dean allowing himself a little bit of hope that they might finally get the upper hand. Because this is Supernatural, so you know that hope is about to be horribly shattered.

Dean hears a sound from Jack’s room and goes in to investigate, waking Jack from a nightmare.

Jack: I’m sorry.

Dean: You don’t have to apologize. I have ‘em too, all the time.

Jack: What do you see?

Dean: Depends…mostly people I couldn’t save.

Oh Dean. He is always so tormented by his failures, and has such a hard time remembering all the good he’s done in the world, all the people he HAS saved.

Dean sits down on the edge of the bed and is so gentle with Jack, reassuring him that he is strong but that everyone makes mistakes and no one is perfect.

Dean: But we can get better. Every day, we can get better. I don’t know what you went through over there, I know it was bad. But we’ll figure out a way to deal with it. Together. You’re family, kid. And we look after our own.

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I think it’s rather brilliant how the Show has managed to give the Winchesters and Cas a son, which is not something I anticipated. But all three of them have come to love Jack and to think of him as a son, as family. I loved this glimpse of Dean as a parent figure, because it’s always been such an integral part of him. He raised Sam, was mother and father as well as brother – and it’s clear that has been a defining part of his identity. Having the chance to do that with Jack is something I think Dean takes to naturally – once he finally decided that Jack was not going to go darkside. I love Jack’s quiet nod as he accepts what Dean says as genuine. Alexander Calvert was superb in this episode – but more on that later.

Meanwhile, Mary and Bobby are strolling through a rainy Vancouver woods that does not look at all like Kansas, but their conversation is kinda adorable. Ketch is apparently off doing his Ketch thing (and Mary seems to have gotten past her awful history with Ketch, oddly), and Rowena and Charlie are roadtripping.

Bobby: Ginger trouble.

It’s clear now that indeed there has been a time jump, because the AU people are “settling in”. Bobby included. He looks kinda shyly over at Mary.

Bobby: I like it here…

supernatural mary winchester smiles at bobby supernatural bobby to mary i like it here

There’s a bit of flirtation going on between Mary and Bobby, which is…interesting. I’m not opposed to it, though I wonder what Jeffrey Dean Morgan will have to say about it when he finally returns to the show for the last episode (no, I have no idea if this will happen, I just like to believe it).

Their romantic interlude is spoiled by a trail of blood on the ground, because this is, after all, Supernatural – and no one gets to be happy for more than 0.5 seconds.

It’s Maggie from the tunnels (who half of fandom didn’t remember and thought it was a brand new character).

Jack clearly feels responsible and guilty as they ask a friend of Maggie’s what happened, trying to figure out how she was killed. Turns out there was a boy named Nate from the convenience store who Maggie had a crush on and snuck out to meet the night before…

Anddddddddddd poof! Jack is gone.

Uh oh.

Me: Oh no, he’s going after Nate.

Sure enough, Jack finds hapless convenience store clerk Nate and pins him up against the wall.

supernatural jack pins nate up against wall let good times roll

Me: Wait, how do we know that’s even Nate? What if that’s not Nate?? What does it say on his name tag? OMG I think it says George! That’s not Nate, it’s George!

Alana: (deadpans) It’s Nate.

Me: Oh.

Cas, Sam and Dean show up (very quickly so the convenience store must be in the bunker’s backyard, which is handy for beer runs) and try to stop Jack. Jack tosses poor Cas off like he’s not even there and ignores Sam and Dean. So Dean pulls out his gun, and shoots him.

Me and Alana: What the hell, Dean??

Sam: (silently): Same.

Jack: (dropping Nate) You shot me!

Dean: To get your attention.

Remind me never to ignore Dean Winchester. (Like that is even the remotest of remote possibilities, says everyone who has ever met me)

Jack is distraught and feels even more like everything he does is wrong. He runs out of the store. Cas tries to follow, but Dean holds him back and tells him to let Jack go.

Poor Jack wanders the nearby woods in anguish.

Jack: I keep hurting people…

He’s so angry with himself, so frustrated and feeling so guilty, that he erupts in self hatred, punching himself as he asks over and over, “why do you keep hurting people??”

It was so heartbreaking I had to grab Alana and cry out “Jack OMG Jack” repeatedly. Poor Alana.

Luckily we are both big Jack fans, so we pretty much got upset together. Once again, Alex Calvert absolutely killed it in this scene – he made it 100% believable that Jack was feeling all those emotions and was overwhelmed by them. It’s exactly what people do when they have no way to deal with self hatred, and it’s horrible to watch.

supernatural jack crying hard over maggie

Back in the convenience store, an ear splitting sound paralyzes Sam, Dean and Cas. And ME! Alana and I had the volume turned up to about 80 on my television so we could hear it on the video, and that meant that our ears were in almost as much pain as the characters onscreen. Ouch!

Dean grabs Sam and the three of them run outside just as the windows of the store blow out. Michael makes a grand entrance, leaving Sam and Cas on the ground.

supernatural castiel sam winchester after store blows up glass finale

But Dean throws open the Impala’s trunk and quickly lights a holy oil bomb and throws it at Michael, giving them time to get in the car.

Dean: Run!

Me: Run faster!!

They get away as Michael stands behind a line of holy oil that’s about ten yards long.

Me and Alana: Um, how come he couldn’t just walk around it?

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No time to conjecture, because Lucifer has also come through the rift and appears to Jack. Jack is understandably confused, since Sam told him that Lucifer was dead (which I’m sure he assumed was the truth).

Lucifer: Sam’s a big fat liar, and a bad person. And freakishly tall, so…

He tells Jack that Sam left him behind, which clearly disturbs Jack. Then he goes on to pretty much tell Jack everything he wants to hear, the way any master manipulator would. You need me…we’re not human… we can escape our past and our sins and start over…

Of course that’s seductive for Jack – he is desperate for a do over, so he can make up for his perceived wrongs and failings. Lucifer plays on that, and also on Jack’s youth and naivete.

Jack: What do we do?

Lucifer: We leave… explore the stars, the planets, the galaxies…

Jack: Like Star Wars?

supernatural lucifer looking up at start let good times roll

supernatural jack to lucifer like star wars

Me and Alana: Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!!

Lucifer: (taking advantage of every opportunity) Want a light saber? A Wookie?

He calls Jack affectionate nicknames like ‘buddy’ or ‘kiddo’, again playing on his longing for his father’s love – a universal thing that seems to persist even when people know that their parent is unable to give it.

And Lucifer does it – he wins Jack over. But first, Jack wants his dad to bring back poor dead Maggie. Lucifer is reluctant. He says it’s not a good idea, that people sometimes come back…different.

Jack: Sam didn’t.

Lucifer: Well, Sam has always been different….

Me and Alana: Damn right!

Sam proves that his “different” is awesome by being smart enough to ask Maggie more about her attack. He’s so gentle as he’s questioning her, so empathic. Both Winchesters, in this episode, are a mix of totally badass when they need to be and strikingly gentle with others who are hurting. Sam knows how disconcerting it is to be dead one minute and then alive again the next, and his conversation with Maggie reflects that understanding. And because of that, Maggie does share what she remembers.

Maggie: I didn’t see his face…but I saw his eyes…

Me and Alana: Lucifer!

The boys try all avenues to figure out where Lucifer is, including “putting Jody on it” – another reminder that the Wayward Sisters characters are staying prominent in the Supernatural universe – and Cas attempting to get information from Angel Radio, which apparently is just static. Not helpful.

There really is never a dull moment in this episode, because Michael (who woke up and walked around that line of holy fire) breaks down the door of the bunker without much trouble. Perhaps he let himself pause behind the holy fire because he knew that he could just stroll into the bunker anyway?

Michael seems to be the kind of guy who likes to put on a show (is it something with archangels?), because Asmodeus got into the bunker too but much more quietly. Michael not only blasts the door open and flashes all the lights, but he theatrically floats down to the floor instead of using the stairs. Christian Keyes can totally pull off dramatic and makes Michael a figure of some majesty (and some fear), which I really appreciate. Inexplicably, Sam and Dean start shooting at him and Cas tries to angel blade him – both of which they had to know weren’t going to do a damn thing. I guess it felt better than just standing there though.

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I loved the small moment when Sam tells Mary to run and take Maggie out of there, and Mary looks at him incredulously.

Mary: What?! No!

Me to Alana: Yes! Good response, Mary! I like that she didn’t want to leave her boys behind.

Michael, again going with the theatricality, physically beats up Sam, Dean and Cas even though I’m sure he could have killed them all instantly. With Cas and Sam incapacitated, Michael picks Dean up by the neck and begins to slowly choke him to death, telling Dean that he should be honored to be the first soul that Michael has taken in this new world.

Michael: I could’ve done this quick, but I wanted to enjoy it.

Dean, almost unable to speak, nevertheless chokes out a typical Dean response.

Dean: As Shakespeare once said, eat me, Dickbag!

Oh Dean, I do love you. Defiant til the end. And kudos to Andrew Dabb for putting in that line of explanation, so I didn’t have to wonder why Michael was conveniently dragging it out long enough for something to intervene.

Meanwhile, Smart!Sam is trying desperately to save his brother’s life as Dean is slowly asphyxiated. On his knees and barely able to speak, Sam prays to Jack, telling him, “we need you.”

Jack and Lucifer are having a bonding time looking at the stars, with Lucifer already making some missteps talking about how he’s planning some “improvements” to the world, when Jack hears Sam’s prayer. Boom! He’s back in the bunker, eyes glowing, hand raised and facing Michael.

jack lucifer bonding over supernatural stars

Jack: You hurt my friends…my family…

And just like that, Jack takes Michael down.

Me and Alana: Whoa, Jack can do that??

Lucifer (watching from safely behind Jack): Whoa.

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supernatural lucifer reacts to jack taking out michael 1324 whoa
Whoa

Michael falls to the floor, yelling at Lucifer: We had a deal!

Jack immediately starts to realize that the lovely father-son bonding story that Lucifer spun for him may not be quite true. He demands to know what Michael meant, and Dean and Sam fill in the blanks, telling Jack that Lucifer killed Maggie and what he plans for humanity. Lucifer of course denies it, trying to pull Jack back to his side, but Jack has way more power than any of us suspected. He stretches out his hand toward Lucifer, and as Lucifer’s eyes turn into glowy starbursts (very cool, VFX wizards!), Jack demands that Lucifer tell him the truth.

And he does!  Lucifer confesses that he killed Maggie.

Lucifer:… So I crushed her skull with my bare hands, and it was warm and wet… and I liked it…

supernatural lucifer confesses killing maggie to jack finale
Caps by @kayb625

supernatural jack reacts to daddy lucifer killing maggie

Jack is horrified.

Jack: You’re not my father, you’re a monster!

Lucifer, realizing that his ploy has failed, breaks into a ROAR of pure rage. He knows he’s lost and he is probably also realizing that Jack is so much more powerful than him that he wouldn’t have had the upper hand for long.

And in that moment, we see once again the true face of the devil.

supernatural true face of lucifer the devil to dean winchester finale

Read on for Part 2 of Lynn’s Supernatural Let the Good Times Roll Season 13 finale.